Well folks, it is Tuesday night and I am sitting here wallowing in defeat as I try to focus long enough to create a witty and interesting Wild Fact. Before we get into the real reason we are here, I would like to congratulate both the Canadians and Americans for an incredible game and an excellent World Junior Tournament. It was a hard fought and well deserved win for the Americans. A word of caution though, Canada will be back for Gold next year in Buffalo, so look out! Now I can’t wait for the Olympics!! Okay, enough of my rambling. I was doing some research the other day about Polar Bears and I thought that I should make a post about these incredible animals that symbolize the north.
The polar bear shares the title of the largest land carnivore with the kodiak bear. On average a male polar bear will weigh between 350-680 kg (770-1500 pounds). So the next time some cheesy guy tries the old pick up line of “How much does a Polar Bear weigh?” you can actually answer him before he says “enough to break the ice”. After you answer correctly, you can sit back and watch the flustered guy struggle to make conversation. The polar bear relies heavily on the marine system for food with seals being their prey of choice. More importantly, the polar bear depends on the ice floes to hunt and survive. As you can imagine, climate change is melting this ice and for that reason is the number one threat to the survival of the polar bear species. Hopefully a solution can be found before it is too late, if it isn’t already too late!
As you would expect the polar bear has developed several adaptations that allows them to live in a very harsh northern environment. Polar bears tend to have very large feet which provide the same service we discussed yesterday. They act as snowshoes to try and keep the bear from breaking through the snow. As well, these large paws help distribute their weight while walking on thin ice and are excellent for propelling the bear while swimming. Similarly, these magnificent paws are covered with small bumps which provide traction control on ice. Finally, the claws of the polar bear are deeply scooped to help with digging through the ice. Who would have thought that feet can have so many important uses?
Okay, so the bear has impressive feet for walking and hunting but how do they manage to live in that cold air? I was outside at -37 degrees Celsius the other day and just about froze to death. Incredibly enough the polar bear is insulated by about 10 cm (3.9″) of blubber plus have their hide and two layers of fur. In fact they are so well insulated that they will overheat if the temperature goes about 10 degrees Celsius. I was impressed to learn that polar bears are nearly invisible when looked at using infrared photography, which detects heat! As mentioned, they have two layers of fur which serve two different purposes. They have a thick underfur that keeps them nice and warm. They also have the outer layer of guard hairs which propels water and protects the insulating underfur. Maybe this is why I was cold at -37! I just needed a better insulating system!
Polar Bear Fast Fact: The white coat of the polar bear will turn to a yellowish colour as the bear ages.
Thanks for stopping by and reading today’s Wild Fact! Enjoy the rest of your day!
